One year ago, professor Takahashi took us to the innovation lab and let us experience the virtual reality gears. Although the technology was not so mature as it is today, I still remember the excitement when I put on Oculus headsets. At that time, I saw a 360 degree and 3D natural scenery with a butterfly flying around.

Last semester, I interviewed Andy Wright, publisher of the New York Times Magazine, for my class project. He told me that they were collaborating with VRSE and Google Cardboard to launch virtual reality. When their first official story “the displaced” was released, I was impressed by this new storytelling technique. Wright said, “The newspaper and magazine bring the world to our audience, but with VR, we have the opportunity to bring our readers to the world.” Therefore, I think people has top priority to participate in the VR revolution and can be more engaged in the story when they use Google Cardboard, Samsung gear, or the Oculus Rift.

On Wednesday night, I had the opportunity to try Samsung Gear VR, 3D scan, and Google Cardboard. When I put on the Samsung Gear, I felt that the screen was very blurry. Later on, I realized that it was not the problem of screen resolution, because even if I tried to scroll the resolution button, it was still blurry. Then I adjusted the Samsung gear VR and everything went well. In fact, the screen resolution of Samsung gear VR was very high, which was 2560 x 1440 pixel Super AMOLED.

I had so much fun with the Avengers video. This was the first time that I had such a close distance with Captain America. I felt that I was floating in the air with characters in the scene. The 3D sound also contributed to my physical feeling. When I turned around, I felt that I was trapped in the avenger world, and it was difficult for me to get away with it. It indicated that sometimes, the quality of 3D graphics was so high that people might have a sense of uncanniness in the scene.

The second video that impressed me was a series of beautiful scenery in the world. It was amazing because I felt that I was flying in the air and seeing flocks running in the vast prairie. If people cannot experience the beauty of the nature on their own, a Samsung gear VR can satisfy them.

When I saw some students playing the Oculus Rift, they were trying to figure out how to play with the remote control. When they wore the headset, they could not insert something through the keyboard. Therefore, I think Samsung gear VR was easier to get the hang of than that of Oculus, but Oculus provided you with more possibilities. For instance, you can play computer games and watch videos via Oculus. Additionally, the head tracking of both Samsung gear and Oculus are smooth.

In conclusion, the full spherical range of vision gave an unusual experience about things around the world, but sometimes, I would have a sense of uncanniness from some fictional videos.